An intriguing & interesting series of interconnected short stories that illustrate post-Civil War Cajun & Creole society in Louisiana. - pb.

Free E-Book available at Gutenberg.org & Archive.org ( )

Bayou Folk (1894) is a collection of 23 short stories that tell of life in 19th century Louisiana – on the bayou, in small towns, plantations, and New Orleans. It’s a kaleidoscope of locations, types of stories, and races of characters – whites, Creoles, Acadians, ‘Negros’, and ‘Mulattoes’ are all mixed together here. Most are poor and many are illiterate. The stories take place mostly after the Civil War, but I found the strongest three to be set before (or during) it:

‘Desiree’s Baby’ – probably her best in this collection, it deals with mixed-race children, with a surprise ending which subtly questions the feelings of racial superiority.

‘La Belle Zoraide’ - about the cruelty of slaveholders in trying to arrange a marriage between a creole beauty and a mulatto she doesn’t love.

‘A Lady of Bayou St. John’ - about a young married woman in a lonely marriage who because attracted to another man, believes she will go “anywhere, anywhere” with him, but finds her heart changes after her husband is killed in the war. There is a great quote from this one: “That mysterious, that treacherous bond called sympathy, had revealed them to each other.”

Overall the stories are a little uneven in terms of emotional impact, and her other collections are stronger, but these clearly show her promise as an author and you could do worse. Chopin sought first and foremost to portray truth, like one of her literary heroes Guy de Maupassant, and in that she was successful. Because of the themes of poor folk in the country living in a stratified society, I was also reminded of Turgenev’s ‘Sketches From a Hunter’s Album’. ( )

This edition has versions that have been "translated" into modern English, including passages originally in French. The original versions are in appendixes. ( )